Schumer: Bus companies should display safety ratings

Bus companies should display their safety records on their vehicles the way restaurants put up theirs in their storefronts, a key Democratic senator said over the weekend.

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Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who has called for increasing bus safety after deadly crashes in his home state recently, asked the Department of Transportation to make the recommendation a requirement.

“If bus companies have a poor safety record, passengers should know about it before they purchase a ticket,” Schumer said in a statement released by his office Sunday.

“It seems like every week, we hear of another crash involving the discount tour bus industry. It is crucial that passengers are clearly and unambiguously alerted to a company’s safety record before they ever board a bus.”

Congress held hearings about bus safety after crashes in the Northeast in March resulted in 17 people being killed. The issue came back to the forefront after a recent crash in Northern Virginia resulted in another four people dying, leading to more hearings in the House.

The DOT has stepped up its random bus inspections, and the department recently touted the closing of two companies for safety violations.